The present invention relates generally to a safety device, and more particularly to a device for shielding a sharp tip of a tubular needle.
Needle assemblies have particular, although not exclusive application in the field of medicine and have tubular needles with sharpened ends for use in piercing the skin to withdraw materials as needed. The needle is supported by some other structure that is used to manipulate the needle. The most common example is a syringe. However, some needle assemblies require the application of substantial force in use. One example of such a needle assembly is a bone marrow needle assembly that is used to penetrate cortical bone to reach the intramedullary canal for withdrawing liquid or a biopsy sample of bore marrow, or for infusing the canal with a selected material. Typically, the needle includes a cannula and a stylet that is received in the cannula and has a hard, sharp tip that can penetrate cortical bone. The tip projects out from the distal end of the cannula. The stylet can be withdrawn from the cannula after the needle penetrates the bone so that the hollow interior of the cannula can be used as a conduit for liquid or a receptacle to collect bone marrow.
In order to penetrate cortical bone, a substantial amount of force must be applied to the needle. For this reason, bone needle assemblies conventionally mount the needle in a handle that is sized and shaped so that the technician may comfortably grip the handle and apply the force necessary to penetrate the bone. The handle may comprise two handle members that can be selectively put together and separated for inserting the stylet into the cannula and removing the stylet from the cannula. A proximal handle member mounts the stylet and a distal handle member mounts the cannula. “Proximal” and “distal” refer to the relative location of the handle members to the technician when the needle assembly is in use. The proximal handle member is in contact with the palm of the technician's hand in use, and the distal handle member is on the opposite side of the proximal handle member from the palm.
Some needle assemblies, including bone needle assemblies, have associated safety mechanisms that shield the sharp tips of the needle components when they are not needed and after they have become contaminated with potentially hazardous biological material. The safety mechanism includes a shield and usually a mechanism for locking the shield in place over the sharpened tip. As a matter of convenience, and to enhance the probability that the safety feature will be used by a medical technician, the safety feature may be secured to the needle assembly. However, the safety feature must be retained out of the way when the needle assembly is being used, for example, to collect a liquid or solid sample from the intramedullary canal. The safety feature then must be released from its stowed position and moved to an operative position in which its shield covers the sharpened tip of the needle. While effective, this safety feature adds cost to the needle assembly and requires a conscious effort to use.
In cases where a sample (e.g., a bone marrow sample) is collected by the needle assembly, the sample has to be removed from the needle assembly. An obturator is a device including a long thin shaft that can fit inside the cannula for pushing the sample of bone marrow out of the cannula. This can be done with the safety shield in position covering the sharp end of the cannula to protect the technician. In some cases it will be determined that the sample is not satisfactory and it will be necessary to obtain a second sample. It is not necessary to use a new needle assembly, because the needle assembly would be reused on the same patient. However, the shield is held in place over the tip of the needle assembly making it unusable for a collecting a second sample. Accordingly, there is a need for a needle assembly that can be easily reset for second use, but which will not result in inadvertent release of the safety shield.